16 September 2015

Some various old pictures from 2006/2007, the last time the volcano erupted.

The highest plume recorded: 55.000ft! It looks like Hiroshima.

Even when flying away form the toxic ashes, some particles were invisible in the air and could only be seen after landing. A lot of people complained when the European airspace was closed some years ago after that whatwasthatimpossiblenameagain volcano erupted in Iceland. Well after I have seen these minor eruptions, after 3 engines were lost I understand and support the authorities. If no action is taken and a crash happens, scientists and others will be thrown in jail, especially in Italy.

Empakai crater in the foreground, Ngorongoro Highlands.

Ashes covered a wide area making it tough for the few villagers out there.

I must have been in a state of grace that day… here is the 2nd plateau of the volcano. The ash layer got so thick or dense for some months that water would be trapped in a pond.

22 January 2015

An old picture: I had been stranded in a Masai village, Pininyi on lake Natron shores. The problem was a jammed starter. Pat Patten, the manager-founder, had come to rescue me with a new starter. A night in a Masai village can be interesting.

A one-legged man leaves the clinic after some treatment on his stump.

Babies receive their drop of polio.

A nice ‘medical’ hut in the Rift valley.

An airstrip near an active volcano named Lengai.

In this place, Oleparkashi, the clinic takes place under the wing. Notice the scale hanging from the wing.

A man goes home, probably quite disappointed. Nothing we can do for his elephantiasis on the legs.

Patiently waiting for the doctor.

Another hut, a different view of the volcano Lengai.

The last 2 pictures were shot on slide film with my lovely Rolleiflex.

13 March 2014

A doctor inspects a baby. It’s amazing what can be achieved with 3 boxes of supplies. The people we treat live far away from any facility and still , from these remote clinics, we rarely fly a patient out to the nearest hospital. The doctors manage to cure most cases.

Curious visitors on lake Natron.

A medical hut in bricks, the only one in the 25 villages we visit.

A Sonjo mother waits with her child.

Maasai warriors playing and posing for my benefit, and theirs as they will receive a few prints later. I made a point not to give any money but prints to each model.

Women come from a long way to attend the clinics.

We get to land in the most stunning landscapes, here in the Rift Valley near the active volcano Lengai

I had just flew this man from the hospital back home. He still had difficulties to walk and was waiting for friends or relatives to carry him home.

A lone tree serves as a clinic spot.

I had had a brake problem so TJ, a former colleague, came to swap planes.

17 November 2013

Tanzania is a country of contrasts. Here are some pictures shot in the mythical Rift Valley.

This is the only active volcano in East Africa, Oldoinyo Lengai. Though as said yesterday, Mt Meru near Arusha, is a threat again. Congo and Ethiopa also share the honor to hold active volcanos on their soil.

07 October 2013

Flying Medical Service has definitely some of the best bush airstrips! Whether for the challenge or the sceneries. Here a flooded strip at Monik.

a volcano, Lengai and an active one that is.

a bit of low flying in Olduvai gorge.

downhill airstrip, one way in, one way out, no discussion. Wind is not a factor really.

our new recruit.

the advantage of this place is that the strip can be set anywhere, just throw a few rocks (which won’t stay white very long) et voilà.

I don’t fly this Herc’, though this is one of the very few big bush beasts I’d love to get a job onto, and watching a C 130 bush take off is always impressive.

Rift Valley, just a few small villages, a coupla airstrips down there…

time to kick some butts before I can take off from one of the Katavi park airstrips. Animals are common on strips of course, but such a variety, not so much. Zebras, Cape elands and waterbucks all together, what a treat. Even if it meant I had to run and yell like an idiot to chase them away. The other idiots were busy nose-picking somewhere. I won’t give names here but my fellow pilots know which green men I'm referring to.

02 September 2013

a colleague came to rescue me after a brake failure, we just swapped airplanes so I could continue safely on the medical tour and the other short airstrips. Notice the brown spot, an anteater hole that I had had just filled up.

15 June 2013

flying above such a marvelous country is quite a privilege. Not luck since I chose to come in East Africa 14 years ago (already), knocking on doors , travelling a bit by bus like many bush pilots in the world.

So enjoying my privilege with a camera while flying…. here is a Masai village in the rain season.

lake Natron filled up by rains. The salt patterns have momentarily disappeared.

here are the famous salts showing off. Colors and psychedelic patterns.

some inhospitable territory west of lake Natron. This country is striking by its diversity within a few miles.

A hedgehog fluffy toy mimicking the dwarf in ‘Amelie’. This is the stunning active volcano Oldoinyo Lengai.

20 April 2013

normally a pilot sits on the left seat but there was a new pilot to train so I sat on the right seat, gave him a lesson about flying low and I took some shots

here on final just before landing in the Ngorongoro area

next to an active volcano, Oldoinyo Lengai

high wing aircraft have a few advantages, the wings provide shade to our doctor and the patients, the clearance is better if the airstrip hasn’t been properly cleared of bush or high grass, aerial viewing of the ground is better.

a Masai warrior on his motorbike.

the C206 on a sloped airstrip. The Ngorongoro Highlands also offer incredible landscapes.

01 March 2013

A propeller seriously damaged. That was a prop strike with engine running at high speed. Tip: the 3 blades are equally twisted. One blade damaged means the engine was off and the propeller had no inertia. Some pilots have been caught lying...

Facing an active volcano, Lengai. Flying Medical Service has about 30 various airstrips to provide mobile clinics. Here is Monik on lake Natron.

05 February 2013

Big puncture obviously, on a replacement tyre. I was angry at the Dar es Salaam workshop who had given us that piece of crap which was worse than the previous punctured tyre…

Melted battery terminal resulting in 3 days in a hotel waiting for the new battery.

typical scene in a park: a Land Rover alongside an airstrip.

Sad view in Arusha airport, a lousy pilot trashed this F406 on take off. He could have killed dozens of people, not only his passengers but also the various people in other aircraft or on the airport. He had stopped a few meters short of a big plane being boarded and the fuel station…

A Cessna 206 dwarfed by a huge Mil 26.

Flying loosely formation with a Cessna 404.

Ndutu airstrip quite flooded and momentarily out of service. This strip is famous for being soft when wet. Rains can be intense and change the landscapes within minutes.

19 January 2013

that gray area is a lava flow from the major volcanic activity in 2007 and 2008. That truck is using the regular track near the culprit, Oldoinyo Lengai.

another truck, but this one has some problem to sort out. This a delta on the lake Natron northern shoreline

same truck. I wonder if the driver enjoyed the scenery while waiting for some help…

laundry day a bit further in the delta.

cows and goats…. to be seen everywhere in Tanzania and further. The country is vast and not barb-wired everywhere like in South Africa.

Masai farmers plowing the fields the old way, an ox or and a hoe.

Market day in Loliondo, a village north of Serengeti.

the person in the river is an adult, a masai man in his bright red clothes but he could have been a 5 year old child as well. Those kids don’t always go to school but they enjoy somehow a great outdoor life. Roaming the bush without a real schedule, meeting friends…

03 January 2013

Flying Medical Service operates 2 Cessna 206’s in Tanzania, mostly between Arusha and the Serengeti but we cover emergencu flights all over the country. Here are some pictures of the beasts in their favorite element, the bush…

Oljoro, a small village off the map like many. The clinic hut needs some repair and that big dust devil won’t make the roof any better.

Landing soon on the shoreline, Olorbelin, lake Natron. A quick look outside and here is a picture of the reflection and the shadow on the shallow waters.

At Monik on the western lake Natron shore, facing the active volcano Oldoinyo Lengai. The doctor is busy attending the patients under the much needed shade.

Another airstrip, another clinic, another doctor at work…

This is Engoveroni on the slope of Empakai crater, Ngorogoro Highlands. This is our grade 5 airstrip. Look at the slope…it’s not me being drunk for the composure, look at the people who are standing straight up. I landed there last month with defective brakes but that was not an issue at all. Everything else is wrong too with this one, which makes it very challenging and rewarding.

More clinics, Ololosokwan in the Rift valley near Natron…

and Olbalbal outside Ngorongoro crater.

On another note I got a serious surprise 2 weeks ago: I was doing a preflight check around the airplane when the front half cargo door fell on my foot! Obviously preflights are there for a reason…

That was because the 2 hinge pins had been stolen. That is the twisted white thing on the picture, the top one here. Those things have no value but we never know what new use local Masai people could think of…

Pat, our director, has always been thoughtful about how to sort out troubles in the bush before calling for help. So we carry a decent toolbox on board amongst many things. For instance there are what look like giant hairpins, called Cotten pins. I just had to clip one in two and play around with one half for each hinge. Not sure this was entirely legal but what the heck…